Excitement mounts as we all head into the week of Auto Remarketing Canada Conference 2018! We know you live and breathe for this, but in case you want to brush up, here are some of the hot topics we’ve been covering recently in AR Canada.

With so many deals flying around the Canadian autosphere, business junkies’ heads must be spinning. Thankfully, the folks at ARC Con will make sense of it in two shakes of a lamb’s tail.

CARPROOF is a presenting sponsor and exhibitor of ARC Con, while Carfinco is a bronze sponsor. Track down their reps at the conference by registering here.

High Used-Car Values

Overall, used-car prices have remained at historic highs judging from Canadian Black Book’s Used Vehicle Retention Index, with compacts and sub-compacts leading the pack, growing in price since last February by some six percent. Over that same time, minivans and full-sized pickups have slipped in price by 5.3 and 2.2 percent, respectively.

In an interview with AR Canada, CBB Vice President of Research & Editorial Brian Murphy pointed to a healthy economy, used-vehicle exports to the United States and just the general rising trend of the used-car market over the past decade as determinants for the steadily rising values of used cars.

What comes up must come down, though, and a lull of three to four years has been predicted by Murphy.

Quoted by AR Canada, CBB President Brad Rome stated, “It would be hard for us to continue breaking sales records throughout 2018 and beyond.”

While it might not be a bubble, remarketers across the country should keep their eye on the market.

Strong CPO Market

Along with high retention values for used cars, the Canadian certified pre-owned market has been going strong for some time, with many German luxury and Asian economy marques leading the pack.

The strength of CPO sales will also figure into maintaining the record values for used cars, and high numbers of lease returns over the past few years (about 225,000 annually between 2013 and ’17) have led to more cars becoming easier to certify, thereby retaining their value., according to KAR Auction Services Chief Economist Tom Kontos.

“I would expect certified used-vehicle sales continue to grow in Canada and provide demand/supply support to wholesale values because those off-lease units that start coming back are perfect candidates to be certified cars,” Kontos said in an interview with AR Canada.

The CPO market might be in for a major upswing, too. That figure of 225,000 over the last four years might be dwarfed by an estimated 400,000 annual lease returns between 2019 and 2021.

More Consumers Buying Online

New generations of digital natives coming of age contribute largely to that figure. Between respondents aged 18-34, 36 percent would consider buying fully online, compared to the paltry 11 percent who would consider buying online seen among those in the 55+ age bracket.

““This would be a major shift in automotive retailing, and one that is similar to how millennials research, shop for and purchase so many of their goods today,” CBB’s Brian Murphy said in an interview with AR Canada.

However, dealers shouldn’t panic: Of the methods used to research cars, dealer websites ranked highest, garnering a respectable 23 percent of the vote. All that means is that dealerships must be flexible and adapt with the times, rolling with changes as they occur.

What do you think will be the hot topics at ARC Con 2018? Let us know on Twitter! Join the convo by tweeting our handle, @AutoRemktingCAN, or by using the hashtag #ARCcon2018.